I have an 89 prostar and was taking off my swim deck of to do some restoration, well once i got it off i noticed that the bottom screws on the bracket seem to go into the bottom of the boat with no access on the inside, just wondering if anyone knows how this is supposed to be....while i had the screws out i was cleaning out the holes and noticed that on the passenger side one of the holes had some blackish colored water come out of it, it was only less than a half of cup but none of the others seemed to do this....also its the only hole that seems to be deeper than the rest....any help would be appreciated..i was just planning on putting some silicone type of sealant in there when i reinstall the swim deck...

thanks, Jay

Luv2Ski

03-01-2011, 09:36 AM

I had some brown colored water come out mine when I had the swim deck off last winter during the time I was restoring the boat. My assumption was that over the last 23 years a little water makes its way into the "sealed" portion of the hull through the various screws/bolts located in the deck and transom. I have no idea how much water came out, only that when I wiped off the rusty stain dribble, it would come back a few days later.

I don't think it is anything to worry about. The color probably just has to do with what type of dust was in the hull when it was joined (e.g. what color the gel-coat on the next boat down the line was while it was sanded, etc).

Would be a much bigger concern if there was wood in our hulls, but since they are all glass......

Do be sure to deal the deck brackets to the transom when you put it together, that may be the main route of entry anyway.

mjb100798

03-01-2011, 09:46 AM

Thanks for the quick reply, what exactly do you mean "do be sure to deal" or was that "seal"

thanks, Jay

Thrall

03-01-2011, 09:47 AM

Let it dry out good. Fill the hole(s) with a good resin or epoxy and re-drill a pilot hole for the screw(s). If it appears to be thru hull or close to all the way thru, seal it with some 3M 4200 or 5200 when re-installing the screws.

mjb100798

03-01-2011, 10:26 AM

Let me ask you this Thrall, where those holes just originaly pre drilled thru the hull without any sort of backside metal threads or are they basically just fiberglass threads that the bolts went into? Asking because one my other holes was jacked from P.O. breaking off the screw inside the hole and just leaving it be...so any suggestions on what kind of epoxy/resin you would use...do i just re tap them afterwards?

Thanks, Jay

tph

03-01-2011, 02:01 PM

Let me ask you this Thrall, where those holes just originaly pre drilled thru the hull without any sort of backside metal threads or are they basically just fiberglass threads that the bolts went into? Asking because one my other holes was jacked from P.O. breaking off the screw inside the hole and just leaving it be...so any suggestions on what kind of epoxy/resin you would use...do i just re tap them afterwards?

Thanks, Jay

I fairly sure the '89 had a threaded stainless backing plate glassed into the transom. (it seems that way on mine) I would try to restore those without any drilling, retapping etc. if possible. Maybe a bolt extractor would work for the stud that is broken off. I used a good silicone sealant when reinstalling the platform mounting blocks.